Pierre Regional Airport is a public airport three miles east of

Pierre Pierre is a masculine given name. It is a French form of the name Peter. Pierre originally meant "rock" or "stone" in French (derived from the Greek word πέτρος (''petros'') meaning "stone, rock", via Latin "petra"). It is a translatio ...

, in

Hughes County, South Dakota Hughes County is a County (United States), county in the U.S. state of South Dakota. As of the 2020 United States Census, the population was 17,765, making it the least populous capital county in the nation, and the List of counties in South Dak ...

Federal Aviation Administration The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) is the largest transportation agency of the U.S. government and regulates all aspects of civil aviation in the country as well as over surrounding international waters. Its powers include air traffic m ...

records say the airport had 15,983 passenger boardings (enplanements) in

calendar year Generally speaking, a calendar year begins on the New Year's Day of the given calendar system and ends on the day before the following New Year's Day, and thus consists of a whole number of days. A year can also be measured by starting on any o ...

2008, 13,692 in 2009 and 14,686 in 2010. The

National Plan of Integrated Airport Systems The National Plan of Integrated Airport Systems (NPIAS) is an inventory of U.S. aviation infrastructure assets. NPIAS was developed and now maintained by the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA). It identifies existing and proposed airports tha ...

for 2011–2015 categorized it as a ''primary commercial service'' airport (more than 10,000 enplanements per year).

Facilities

Pierre Regional Airport covers 1,834 acres (742 ha) at an elevation of 1,744 feet (532 m). It has two asphalt runways: 7/25 is 6,881 by 150 feet (2,097 x 46 m) and 13/31 is 6,900 by 100 feet (2,103 x 30 m). In 2010 the airport had 32,140 aircraft operations, average 88 per day: 78%

general aviation General aviation (GA) is defined by the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) as all civil aviation aircraft operations with the exception of commercial air transport or aerial work, which is defined as specialized aviation service ...

, 11% airline, 11%

air taxi An air taxi is a small commercial aircraft that makes short flights on demand. In 2001 air taxi operations were promoted in the United States by a NASA and aerospace industry study on the potential Small Aircraft Transportation System (SATS) ...

and <1% military. 98 aircraft were then based at the airport: 71% single-engine, 28% multi-engine and 1%

helicopter A helicopter is a type of rotorcraft in which lift and thrust are supplied by horizontally spinning rotors. This allows the helicopter to take off and land vertically, to hover, and to fly forward, backward and laterally. These attributes ...

New terminal building

A new terminal had been needed for many years, as the old terminal building was plagued by a number of problems, primarily space constraints. Construction on the new terminal began in late Spring, 2011 and completed in September, 2012. Denver-based Coover-Clark & Associates, Inc. designed the building and Kadrmas Lee & Jackson's Rapid City office handled the construction administration. Initially, a

jet bridge A jet bridge (also termed jetway, jetwalk, airgate, gangway, aerobridge/airbridge, skybridge, finger, airtube, expedited suspended passenger entry system (E-SPES), or its official industry name passenger boarding bridge (PBB)) is an enclosed, ...

was to be installed at the terminal, but airport officials decided to wait until a scheduled commercial airline could use the

, as

Great Lakes Airlines Great Lakes Airlines was an American regional airline operating domestic scheduled and charter services. Corporate headquarters were in Cheyenne, Wyoming, with a hub at Denver International Airport. As of November 2013, Great Lakes Airlines r ...

aircraft serving the airport at the time were not

capable. Officials also waited because Pierre had been without scheduled passenger jet service operated with mainline aircraft for over 30 years. The new terminal building was designed with the space set aside for a loading bridge, so it required very little effort to install one when the time came. With the introduction of jet service by Aerodynamics, Inc. in 2016, the city began considering a jet bridge for the airport. In August 2017, the Pierre city commission awarded the job of making and installing a new jet-boarding bridge to Sharpe of Pierre for its bid of $716,500. The new jet bridge was installed at the airport on April 23, 2018. A federal grant covered nearly all the costs, with the state kicking in 5% and the city 5%, or about $45,000.

Military use

During World War II the airfield was used by the

United States Army Air Forces The United States Army Air Forces (USAAF or AAF) was the major land-based aerial warfare service component of the United States Army and ''de facto'' aerial warfare service branch of the United States during and immediately after World War II ...

by Air Technical Service Command as a maintenance and supply depot. It was also used by

Sioux Falls Army Air Field Sioux Falls Regional Airport , also known as Joe Foss Field, is a public and military use airport three miles northwest of Sioux Falls, South Dakota, United States. It is named in honor of aviator and Sioux Falls native Joe Foss, who later served a ...

as an auxiliary airfield for

Second Air Force The Second Air Force (2 AF; ''2d Air Force'' in 1942) is a USAF numbered air force responsible for conducting basic military and technical training for Air Force enlisted members and non-flying officers. In World War II the CONUS unit defended ...

B-17 Flying Fortress bomber training.

Historical airline service

Pierre's first airline flights were around 1935, on Watertown Airways; this was at the old airport north of town at . Inland Airlines and successor

Western Airlines Western Airlines was a major airline based in California, operating in the Western United States including Alaska and Hawaii, and western Canada, as well as to New York City, Boston, Washington, D.C., and Miami and to Mexico City, London and ...

served the present airport from about 1938 until 1984; in the 1950s Pierre was one of six stops on a Minneapolis-Los Angeles

Convair 240 The Convair CV-240 is an American airliner that Convair manufactured from 1947 to 1954, initially as a possible replacement for the ubiquitous Douglas DC-3. Featuring a more modern design with cabin pressurization, the 240 series made some inro ...

flight.

North Central Airlines North Central Airlines was a regional airline in the Midwestern United States. Founded as Wisconsin Central Airlines in 1944 in Clintonville, Wisconsin, the company moved to Madison in 1947. This is also when the "Herman the duck" logo was bo ...

Douglas DC-3 The Douglas DC-3 is a propeller-driven airliner manufactured by Douglas Aircraft Company, which had a lasting effect on the airline industry in the 1930s to 1940s and World War II. It was developed as a larger, improved 14-bed sleeper versi ...

s arrived in 1959, flying Minneapolis/Saint Paul - Watertown, SD - Aberdeen, SD - Pierre - Rapid City - Spearfish, SD. Convair 340s, Convair 440s and Convair 580s followed. The first jets were North Central

McDonnell Douglas DC-9-30 The McDonnell Douglas DC-9 is an American five-abreast single-aisle aircraft designed by the Douglas Aircraft Company. It was initially produced by the developer company as the Douglas DC-9 until August 1967 and then by McDonnell Douglas. Aft ...

s in 1968. During the 1970s Western

Boeing 737-200 The Boeing 737 is a narrow-body aircraft produced by Boeing at its Renton Factory in Washington. Developed to supplement the Boeing 727 on short and thin routes, the twinjet retains the 707 fuselage width and six abreast seating with two u ...

s flew nonstop to Rapid City and Sioux Falls with direct, no change of plane service to Denver, Salt Lake City and Los Angeles while North Central DC-9s flew nonstop to Aberdeen and Rapid City with direct service to Minneapolis/St. Paulhttp://www.departedflights.com, Oct. 29, 1972 North Central timetable & Sept. 8, 1973 Western timetable while North Central was also still operating Convair 580 turboprops to Pierre as well. In 1979 North Central merged with

Southern Airways Southern Airways was a regional airline (known at the time as a "local-service air carrier" as designated by the federal Civil Aeronautics Board) in the United States, from its founding by Frank Hulse in 1949 until 1979, when it merged with No ...

to form

Republic Airlines Republic Airlines was an American airline formed by the merger of North Central Airlines and Southern Airways on July 1, 1979. Their headquarters were at Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport, in what is now Fort Snelling in unincorporat ...

which had four departures a day at Pierre flown with

McDonnell Douglas DC-9-50 The McDonnell Douglas DC-9 is an American five-abreast single-aisle aircraft designed by the Douglas Aircraft Company. It was initially produced by the developer company as the Douglas DC-9 until August 1967 and then by McDonnell Douglas. After ...

s and Convair 580s. Republic pulled out of Pierre in 1981, and mainline jet service ended when Western left in 1984. In 1981 Northern Airlines turboprops flew to Minneapolis/St. Paul, Rapid City, Sioux Falls and other cities. In 1984

Mesaba Airlines Mesaba Aviation, Inc. (operating as Mesaba Airlines) was an American regional airline based in Eagan, Minnesota From 2010 to 2012 the airline was a wholly owned subsidiary of Pinnacle Airlines Corporation with code sharing flights operated as ...

turboprops flew Minneapolis/Saint Paul - Sioux Falls - Pierre - Rapid City. By late 1988, two regional air carriers were serving Pierre:

Continental Express Continental Express was the operating brand name used by a number of independently owned regional airlines providing commuter airliner and regional jet feeder service under agreement with Continental Airlines. In 2012 at the time of the merger be ...

operated by

Rocky Mountain Airways Rocky Mountain Airways was an American commuter airline headquartered in Hangar No. 6 of Stapleton International Airport in Denver, Colorado. It was sold to Texas Air Corporation/Continental Airlines in 1986 and was operated as a Continental Expr ...

flying

ATR-42 The ATR 42 is a regional airliner produced by Franco-Italian manufacturer ATR, with final assembly in Toulouse, France. On 4 November 1981, the aircraft was launched with ATR, as a joint venture between French Aérospatiale (now Airbus) and A ...

and Beechcraft 1900 turboprops from Denver, and

Northwest Airlink Northwest Airlink was the brand name of Northwest Airlines' regional airline service, which flew turboprop and regional jet aircraft from Northwest's domestic hubs in Minneapolis, Detroit, and Memphis. Service was primarily to small-to-medium- ...

operated by Mesaba Airlines flying

Fokker F27 The Fokker F27 Friendship is a turboprop airliner developed and manufactured by the Dutch aircraft manufacturer Fokker. It is the most numerous post-war aircraft manufactured in the Netherlands; the F27 was also one of the most successful Europe ...

turboprops from Minneapolis/St. Paul and Sioux Falls. In the fall of 1994 three commuter airlines were serving the airport:

(operating as

United Express United Express is the brand name for the regional branch of United Airlines, under which six individually owned regional airlines operate short- and medium-haul feeder flights. On October 1, 2010, UAL Corporation and Continental Airlines merged t ...

), Mesaba Airlines (operating as

) and AirVantage Airlines, an independent air carrier. Great Lakes Beechcraft 1900s flew nonstop to Denver and direct to Minneapolis/Saint Paul, and Mesaba

Fairchild Swearingen Metroliner The Fairchild Swearingen Metroliner (previously the Swearingen Metro and later Fairchild Aerospace Metro) is a 19-seat, pressurized, twin-turboprop airliner first produced by Swearingen Aircraft and later by Fairchild Aircraft at a plant in Sa ...

flew nonstop to Minneapolis/Saint Paul, and AirVantage Metroliners flew nonstop to Bismarck, ND, Rapid City and Sioux Falls. In summer 1999 Great Lakes Airlines (United Express) Beech 1900s flew to Denver and other cities. In 2002 Great Lakes lost its designation as a United Express carrier but continued to serve Pierre. Until June 30, 2006

flights to

Denver Denver () is a consolidated city and county, the capital, and most populous city of the U.S. state of Colorado. Its population was 715,522 at the 2020 census, a 19.22% increase since 2010. It is the 19th-most populous city in the United ...

were subsidized by the

Essential Air Service Essential Air Service (EAS) is a U.S. government program enacted to guarantee that small communities in the United States, which had been served by certificated airlines prior to deregulation in 1978, maintained commercial service. Its aim is t ...

(EAS) program. The

U.S. Department of Transportation The United States Department of Transportation (USDOT or DOT) is one of the executive departments of the U.S. federal government. It is headed by the secretary of transportation, who reports directly to the President of the United States a ...

selected Big Sky Airlines to provide service beginning July 1, 2006, but that order was suspended when Great Lakes decided to continue service without the EAS subsidy. In 2007 Mesaba Airlines (Northwest Airlink)

Saab 340 The Saab 340 is a Swedish twin-engine turboprop aircraft designed and initially produced by Saab AB and Fairchild Aircraft. It is designed to seat 30-36 passengers and, as of July 2018, there were 240 operational aircraft used by 34 different op ...

s flew direct to Minneapolis/Saint Paul via Watertown, and Great Lakes flew Beechcraft 1900s nonstop to Denver as an independent airline. Following the merger of

Northwest Airlines Northwest Airlines Corp. (NWA) was a major American airline founded in 1926 and absorbed into Delta Air Lines, Inc. by a merger. The merger, approved on October 29, 2008, made Delta the largest airline in the world until the American Airlines ...

and

Delta Air Lines Delta Air Lines, Inc., typically referred to as Delta, is one of the major airlines of the United States and a legacy carrier. One of the world's oldest airlines in operation, Delta is headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia. The airline, along w ...

in 2010,

Delta Connection Delta Connection is a regional airline brand name for Delta Air Lines, under which a number of individually owned regional airlines primarily operate short- and medium-haul routes. Mainline major air carriers often use regional airlines to oper ...

Saab 340s flew between Minneapolis/Saint Paul and Pierre. When Delta Connection ceased its Saab 340 service in December 2011, flights from Minneapolis were operated with Delta Connection Canadair Regional Jet 200 aircraft until Delta Connection pulled out of Pierre on January 31, 2012. From 2012 to 2015, Great Lakes Airlines 19-seat Beechcraft 1900Ds (later reduced to only 9 seats) to Minneapolis/St. Paul and Denver were the only airline flights serving Pierre. Great Lakes Airlines flew via interline agreements with

Frontier Airlines Frontier Airlines is a major ultra-low-cost U.S. airline headquartered in Denver, Colorado. It operates flights to over 100 destinations throughout the United States and 31 international destinations, and employs more than 3,000 staff. The ca ...

and

United Airlines United Airlines, Inc. (commonly referred to as United), is a major American airline headquartered at the Willis Tower in Chicago, Illinois.

before ceasing all service to the airport in late 2015. On August 15, 2016, Aerodynamics, Inc. (later California Pacific Airlines) began flying to Watertown with daily service to Denver, via Pierre, using

Embraer ERJ-145 The Embraer ERJ family (for Embraer Regional Jet, model names EMB-135, EMB-140 and EMB-145) are regional jets designed and produced by the Brazilian aerospace company Embraer. The family includes the ERJ135 (37 passengers), ERJ140 (44 passenger ...

regional jet aircraft. However, the airline suspended all operations nationwide and ended flights to Pierre and Watertown on January 17, 2019.

Airlines and destinations

Air service to Pierre resumed on April 3, 2019, with daily flights to

and continuing service to Watertown. The service to Watertown eventually ended in late 2019. Service was provided by

SkyWest Airlines SkyWest Airlines is an American regional airline headquartered in St. George, Utah, United States. SkyWest is paid to staff, operate and maintain aircraft used on flights that are scheduled, marketed and sold by a partner mainline airline. The ...

, operating via the

brand on behalf of

United Airlines United Airlines, Inc. (commonly referred to as United), is a major American airline headquartered at the Willis Tower in Chicago, Illinois.

using a 50-seat Canadair Regional Jet 200. This service is subsidized with annual funding of $3.64 million (or $49.84 per seat) from the

program. In April, 2021 Denver Air Connection was awarded the EAS contract against city preference, since the subsidy amount was significantly less than the SkyWest proposal. While the community, SkyWest, and United has petitioned for reconsideration, no official decision was made and SkyWest announced intention to remain in both the Pierre and Watertown markets providing 'at-risk' service. Denver Air Connection began their service to Denver on July 1, 2021 using

regional jets. The airline has an interline agreement with United Airlines but does not fly under the United Express brand like SkyWest. A decision was made in October, 2021 that Denver Air would keep the EAS award and SkyWest ultimately ended all service to both Pierre and Watertown on January 3, 2022.

Cargo

Statistics

Top destinations

References

Other sources

* Essential Air Service documents
Docket OST-2001-10128
from the

: *
Notice (July 12, 2001)
of Great Lakes Aviation, Ltd. to terminate scheduled air service at Pierre, South Dakota, effective October 9, 2001. *
Order 2002-3-32 (March 29, 2002)
establishes a subsidy rate for Great Lakes Aviation, Ltd., d/b/a United Express, to provide essential air service in the Pierre-Denver market at annual subsidy rates of $677,495 for the period October 10, 2001, through April 30, 2002, and $318,861 for the period May 1, 2002, through October 31, 2003. *
Order 2004-7-5 (July 6, 2004)
selects Great Lakes Aviation, Ltd. to continue subsidized essential air service at Pierre, and Air Midwest to provide subsidized essential air service at Brookings and Huron, for a two-year period. Great Lakes' service at Pierre is to be 12 weekly nonstop round trips to Denver with 19-seat Beech 1900-Ds, at an annual subsidy of $449,912. Air Midwest's service at Brookings and Huron is to be 12 weekly flights routed Huron-Brookings-Omaha-Brookings-Huron, with 19-seat Beech 1900-Ds, at an annual subsidy of $2,078,727. *
Order 2006-5-7 (May 10, 2006)
selecting Big Sky Transportation Co., d/b/a Big Sky Airlines, to provide essential air service (EAS) at Pierre, South Dakota, for the two-year period beginning July 1, 2006, at an annual subsidy rate of $379,616. *
Order 2006-5-17 (May 19, 2006)
terminating the subsidy being paid to Great Lakes Aviation, Inc. to serve Pierre, South Dakota, effective July 1, 2006 (suspends selection of Big Sky in Order 2006-5-7 since Great Lakes will continue to provide service without EAS subsidy).

External links

Pierre Regional Airport
official site * at South Dakota DOT Airport Directory
Capital City Air Carrier, Inc.
the

fixed-base operator A fixed-base operator (FBO) is an organization granted the right by an airport to operate at the airport and provide aeronautical services such as fueling, hangaring, tie-down and parking, aircraft rental, aircraft maintenance, flight instructi ...

(FBO)
Aerial image as of October 1996
from

USGS The United States Geological Survey (USGS), formerly simply known as the Geological Survey, is a scientific agency of the United States government. The scientists of the USGS study the landscape of the United States, its natural resources, a ...

The National Map ''The National Map'' is a collaborative effort of the United States Geological Survey (USGS) and other federal, state, and local agencies to improve and deliver topographic information for the United States. The purpose of the effort is to prov ...

'' *
{{authority control Airports in South Dakota Regional Airport Transportation in Hughes County, South Dakota Essential Air Service Airfields of the United States Army Air Forces in South Dakota 1943 establishments in South Dakota Airports established in 1943